


A Literary Rivalry

by HumanMonoGami



Category: Dangan Ronpa - All Media Types
Genre: An adventure were happiness is discovered!, M/M, Surprisingly wholesome, Wow, just boys, no bears, yes this is serious
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-12
Updated: 2021-03-12
Packaged: 2021-03-19 06:41:07
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,234
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29995422
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/HumanMonoGami/pseuds/HumanMonoGami
Summary: In an AU where Monokuma is an android with a human appearance living in the same upper class city as Byakuya Togami, the two strangers find each other learning to conquer their isolating self importance by knowing the other exists.
Relationships: Human Monokuma/Togami Byakuya, Monokuma/Togami Byakuya





	A Literary Rivalry

Nobody is ever as unique as they perceive themselves to be. 

A man sits alone, legs crossed in the library, flipping through the pages of a book in an obsolete foreign language, hoping others may walk by and see just how intelligent he is, silently boasting his linguistic talents. 

On the other side of the room, another man pours himself a glass of wine and sketches out some obscene images, knowing that anyone who passes by and sees him drinking in public with such explicit art on his page would be disgusted. 

The two men wanted the attention, and yet they hated the interactions that came with it, so they’d sit off to the side, isolating themselves. In the end, there was absolutely nothing unique about a multilingual reader and a public drunkard. 

Ultimately, there comes a time when people like this finally realize that no matter how high they project their egos to be, they’re just as much specs of dust on a small blue planet as anyone else. When they accepted that, in the grand scheme of things, they were nothing, the distance between them and those beneath them became the distance between them and each other. 

Peeking up from his Latin texts, one Byakuya Togami noticed a man across the room, the same man he’d seen day after day. Why didn’t anyone stop him, he wondered? He seemed flippant, carefree, and most of all completely stupid. The questionable artist hunched over his table, clad in perfectly tailored black, white and red clothing which brought out his heterochromatic eyes and two-toned hair. There was something intrinsically disturbing about him. Byakuya figured that it was his glamorous appearance which stopped others from reprimanding him for his public drinking and grotesque sketches. If everyone were to think that some random man doing whatever the hell he wanted was a celebrity, they’d most likely turn a blind eye on the sight. While at the moment, there was a great distance between them, Byakuya knew these things from their constant exposure to one another.

Shifting to the other side of the room, red and grey eyes peered into the glass in front of them. A stylish android named Monokuma, nothing impossible for this time and place, could see the man on the other side of the room peering at him. He held back giggling, if he were to do so his razor like sharp teeth would alert him. While Monokuma never made eye contact with the other, he’d watched him from the reflection in his glass. He thought about how this egotistical prick couldn’t keep his eyes on the pages of the books he seemed so proud to be able to read.

Day by day, a variety of people came in and out of the library, but the two of them would take their respective spots and attempt to understand the anomaly that was the other man. This sort of analysis started as disgust towards one another, gradually leading into jealousy of how the other lived their life as they did, and finally into a mutual inferiority. Monokuma was doing whatever the absolute hell he wanted, and Byakuya wished he could do the same. Meanwhile, Byakuya was able to go through a variety of books during his time there, seeming somewhat engaged in each. Monokuma wished he could care enough to be even entertained by one book.

It was an evening where the two lost track of time that the distance between them closed. Neither of them wanted to accept that that space apart that they’d maintained was one they wanted to be in the middle of together. 

“Nice wallet, Byakuya Togami,” Monokuma grinned as he flipped the fine leather fabric between his fingers. “That’s what yer ID says, anyway. Hey... I hate to ask, but since I’m here... Guess how much money I stole from it.”

The tall blonde stood up, towering over the other and grabbed it from his hands. “You little scumbag! What are you doing with this?” 

“I dunno. You seem to be rich. I wonder what I AM doing with this. Shouldn’t someone like you keep a better eye on their wallet? Which yeah, I peeked. I admit I’ve got some bad habits. Betcha could tell with all that staring you’ve been doing at me,” the android continued to confidently show his sharp toothed smile, winking slyly. They weren’t strangers, even though they’d never spoken. They’d been together like this daily, without a word. “Well. I wanna play a game with you. Are ya gonna guess how much I stole?” 

“I’m not here to play games with you...” The affluent linguist sighed, glaring directly into the unnatural eyes he’d been getting small glimpses of for the past several weeks. He simply couldn’t take his eyes off of him, so he gave in. “...I’ll indulge you this once, I suppose. What happens when I make my guess?”

“Hmm. You know how much money you had in there, right? I’d hope you would, or else I wouldn’t be bothering you with this. I only bother people who have their shit together,” Monokuma put a finger to his cheek, tilting his head. 

“Yes. I never leave without knowing exactly how much is with me.” Byakuya nodded. He was careful about this. 

“Wonderful! Think of how much you think I stole, and then check the wallet. If the money is the same as it was before, you owe me that much money in date fees. If you’re missing any money, I’ll keep it and leave you alone forever.” Monokuma smiled at him warmly before speaking again, “but y’know, it’s optional if you wanna play that way. You could rough me up and check through my pockets...Or tell me to scram.”

“Tch...I agree to your conditions. Fine. I guess 25,000 yen.” That was half of what he had had on him at this time. Byakuya, although incredibly well off, knew that bringing around too much money would be a poor decision. Upon opening his wallet, he found exactly 50,000 yen. “...Hm. Did you pickpocket me just to ask if I’d go on some sort of outing with you? Everything is here.” 

“Nah. You actually did manage to drop it. Maybe you need someone who unfortunately notices everything about you to make sure you don’t do that again,” the robot responded coyly before handing him a piece of paper with his phone number scrawled onto it. “See ya, then...!”

Byakuya’s heart began to race as he watched the other step away. He wasn’t sure how it was possible. He was completely sober, alert, aware of his surroundings. Even he who took incredibly good care of his health wasn’t nearly that observant. Not only did this person get away with doing whatever he wanted to, he did it while protecting him and yet made a mocking game of it. It was a stupid game, Byakuya felt, but he kept his promise and contacted him. 

From then, the two men who felt as though they were above everything realized they’d always be on the same level as each other. They weren’t unique, as different as they were. They were two lonely people frequenting the city’s library as a way to publicly pass time, basking in their own glory. That realization was the acknowledgment that as long as they were together, loneliness was never truly possible.


End file.
